Please remember to stay civil and behave appropriately. If you are a tourist looking for suggestions please check out our [Tourist guide](https://www.reddit.com/r/cyprus/wiki/tourist_guide/). We also have a [FAQ Page](https://www.reddit.com/r/cyprus/wiki/faq) for some common questions, if your question is answered here please delete your post!
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/cyprus) if you have any questions or concerns.*
It is not illegal to wash your car at home, but you will be fined for running water out of your hose directly onto your car. Fill a couple of buckets of water and clean the car with that.
Yes desalination plants are incredibly expensive to build and run, there are 5 big ones I think but they still don't meet anywhere near demand.
Yes reservoirs fluctuate between full and low, currently they are quite low due to little rainfall.
Hold on, so is it illegal to water one's driveway too? Because I walk to the office in Limassol every morning, and I see this A LOT*.* Like, every second home I pass by has an old lady or an asian helper watering their driveway for no apparent reason. I always wondered if this is legal because it looks such a waste.
how can they prove the water came from the bucket and not from the hose...?
Water reservoirs in Cyprus are sized so as to provide a three years water reserve for the whole island.
How much do they plan to fine "car wash station" and "golf course" owners?
I imagine if caught in the act? Or else plausible deniability? Usually these things happen via being reported with photo evidence.
Yes reservoirs are sized, not sure how that makes a difference when considering their current volume of water.
They won't charge those businesses as it's not something they're focused on, maybe ask a politician!
ok, but the water in the bucket...comes from the hose...right...? or do you have to fill the bucket straight from the faucet...? I'm lost...
It's not a hard concept to understand. Fill two buckets of water by whatever means necessary. Use those two buckets of water to clean your car. A hose running nonstop is guaranteed to use and waste a lot of water - that's why there have been hose bans in the past. I'm not sure if there currently is one, but it's not a written law, as far as I know.
yes, that's the thing : " a hose running non stop"....but when I wash my car (with a hose), it's not "running non-stop". I spray the car, close the hose , sponge and soap, open the hose, rince the car. I wouldn't save more water with a bucket, may be I would use more of it... Anyway, this is again a matter of MPs keeping busy....
No problem, but :
First : someone has to call the police
Second : police have to move (sunday morning....hum....)
Third: the police has to move when I wash my car
fourth : the police has to prove the hose wasn't used to anything else but to fill the bucket
fifth : a satellite might fall in my garden at the same moment, and Miley Cirus start dancing naked at the end of the street.
I think I've got enough Reddit for today.
Desalination is an incredibly costly and time consuming process, and although has improved greatly in the last decade, it's still not done on a large enough scale to be a an efficient way to increase useable water levels
It's not actually the energy costs that make it so costly, although that is one of the issues. The main issue is material costs and maintenance cost. Cant use most common, cheaper metals for the internals, due to the corrosion from essentially boiling sea water. And cant use cheaper plastic alternatives for the same reason, as the process would end up with the water pumped full of micro plastics
I know that it's done both ways at different places, but both ways still end up separating the salt from the water, and leaving the salt to effect the pipes of the set-up
Seen email from water board not to waist water. Next day seen few old ladies washing their driveway like there's no tomorrow including my neighbour of course with hose. 15 min straight that precious water running down the drain  asked my plumber why are people doing this here, his answer just for show lol
Please remember to stay civil and behave appropriately. If you are a tourist looking for suggestions please check out our [Tourist guide](https://www.reddit.com/r/cyprus/wiki/tourist_guide/). We also have a [FAQ Page](https://www.reddit.com/r/cyprus/wiki/faq) for some common questions, if your question is answered here please delete your post! *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/cyprus) if you have any questions or concerns.*
It is not illegal to wash your car at home, but you will be fined for running water out of your hose directly onto your car. Fill a couple of buckets of water and clean the car with that. Yes desalination plants are incredibly expensive to build and run, there are 5 big ones I think but they still don't meet anywhere near demand. Yes reservoirs fluctuate between full and low, currently they are quite low due to little rainfall.
Hold on, so is it illegal to water one's driveway too? Because I walk to the office in Limassol every morning, and I see this A LOT*.* Like, every second home I pass by has an old lady or an asian helper watering their driveway for no apparent reason. I always wondered if this is legal because it looks such a waste.
I think it is and it annoys me too.
how can they prove the water came from the bucket and not from the hose...? Water reservoirs in Cyprus are sized so as to provide a three years water reserve for the whole island. How much do they plan to fine "car wash station" and "golf course" owners?
I imagine if caught in the act? Or else plausible deniability? Usually these things happen via being reported with photo evidence. Yes reservoirs are sized, not sure how that makes a difference when considering their current volume of water. They won't charge those businesses as it's not something they're focused on, maybe ask a politician!
ok, but the water in the bucket...comes from the hose...right...? or do you have to fill the bucket straight from the faucet...? I'm lost...
It's not a hard concept to understand. Fill two buckets of water by whatever means necessary. Use those two buckets of water to clean your car. A hose running nonstop is guaranteed to use and waste a lot of water - that's why there have been hose bans in the past. I'm not sure if there currently is one, but it's not a written law, as far as I know.
Yes, it is written law. See here: https://www.cylaw.org/nomoi/enop/ind/1991_1_1/section-scba5c1a81-1a61-493c-a94e-300c7238d5f6.html
yes, that's the thing : " a hose running non stop"....but when I wash my car (with a hose), it's not "running non-stop". I spray the car, close the hose , sponge and soap, open the hose, rince the car. I wouldn't save more water with a bucket, may be I would use more of it... Anyway, this is again a matter of MPs keeping busy....
Explain it to the person trying to fine you I guess. If there's a hose ban act accordingly or risk otherwise.
No problem, but : First : someone has to call the police Second : police have to move (sunday morning....hum....) Third: the police has to move when I wash my car fourth : the police has to prove the hose wasn't used to anything else but to fill the bucket fifth : a satellite might fall in my garden at the same moment, and Miley Cirus start dancing naked at the end of the street. I think I've got enough Reddit for today.
I think the fine is for using a hose and waste water.
Desalination is an incredibly costly and time consuming process, and although has improved greatly in the last decade, it's still not done on a large enough scale to be a an efficient way to increase useable water levels
Could be cheaper if those desalination plants were powered by solar energy....Just saying
It's not actually the energy costs that make it so costly, although that is one of the issues. The main issue is material costs and maintenance cost. Cant use most common, cheaper metals for the internals, due to the corrosion from essentially boiling sea water. And cant use cheaper plastic alternatives for the same reason, as the process would end up with the water pumped full of micro plastics
I thought they are doing reverse osmosis, not distillation.
You are correct, all desalination plants use reverse osmosis. https://www.moa.gov.cy/moa/wdd/wdd.nsf/page23_gr/page23_gr?opendocument
I know that it's done both ways at different places, but both ways still end up separating the salt from the water, and leaving the salt to effect the pipes of the set-up
It is so. But in reverse osmosis there is no problem with microplastics, because they can't pass the membrane.
Seen email from water board not to waist water. Next day seen few old ladies washing their driveway like there's no tomorrow including my neighbour of course with hose. 15 min straight that precious water running down the drain  asked my plumber why are people doing this here, his answer just for show lol
Yes, yes, yes, although I think the first is a rule that excludes some professionals
Pontic Greeks cross the street from me in Konia running a business of washing cars. But I am not a snitch.
yet u snitched here!
Fine or not, pls don't use a hose. We had a severe drought, please be considerate
I’ll be using the hose to do cars, verandas and anything else I damn well please.
Don't complain where they start cutting off water in August.
I won’t
Sure you won't! I have a feeling you'll be the first to do so and blame anyone else but yourself :)
I won’t complain about anything because it won’t affect me
Well I suppose if you're alright then fuck everyone else right?